The use of rakes and brooms is known for consolidating loose material such as leaves, plant clippings and other debris into large piles. Thereafter, the materials may be transferred to a refuse receptacle by hand, shovel or other device. Typically, the transfer capacity of such devices is limited to a small amount due to the relatively lightweight of the material which makes it difficult to control, and the fact that the devices are not specifically designed to handle this type of material. Further, once the material is in the receptacle, the material's light weight results in a great deal of under-utilized air space and therefore results in inefficient receptacle utilization.
In an attempt to facilitate the collection and transfer of loose, solid material and garden debris, collection and transfer devices have been developed in the prior art. In addition, there are also separate prior art devices for the compaction of loose solid material and garden debris. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,564,907 and 4,693,504 both disclose devices for picking up lawn, garden and other loose debris; while U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,158,995 and 7,152,894 disclose devices for packing waste materials and debris into garbage bags or containers with the device of the '894 patent being attachable to the end of a rake. Although these patented devices provide some help to the worker, this type of yard and/or gardening work remains time consuming and inefficient.